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Crete, Greece

Thankfully Theseus killed off the Minotaur (murderous King Minos came to a sticky end not long after), so there’s no reason not to come to this poet-inspiring island. One look at the landscape and it’s clear why it’s the stuff of legends: milky white stretches of sand, dramatic canyons, deep gorges, verdant olive groves, wild flowers, ancient towns and hilltop villages. The imprint of the island’s varied cultured custodians remains today; Minoan palaces sit side by side with Ottoman mosques and Byzantine monasteries and the ruins at Knossos, Malia, Zakros and Phaistos will impress even the most reluctant of historians.

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From the blog

Getting there

Planes

The three main airports are Heraklion | Chania and Sitia. Easyjet serves the former | with direct flights from LGW (www.easyjet.com). BMI | Multiple Airlines | Aegean Airways and Olympic Air also offer indirect flights to Heraklion and Chania | with stop-offs in Athens | Eleftherios Venizelos and sometimes Munich.

Boats

Hop on a ferry from mainland Greece. There are plenty of different options: boats from Piraeus stop at Agios Nikolaos, Chania, Heraklion and Rethymno; from Gythio head north west to Kissamos-Kastelli; from Thessaloniki dock at Heraklion (www.ferries.gr).

Taxis

Flagging down a taxi in the mountains might prove irksome; ask your hotel to book cabs for you.

Pegasus room at Kapsaliana Village Hotel, Crete, Greece

Hidden among the island’s largest olive grove (the hotel has its own 18th-century press), this traditional Greek hotel is so similar to a quaint Mediterranean village that you could almost miss it. Inside the Pegasus room, things are simple, understated and unequivocally Greek. Whitewashed walls, farmhouse furniture, a king-size bed graced with sprigs of lavender and rosemary, a cosy seating area and an oak-clad bathroom stocked with olive-oil unguents all lie behind a heavy wooden door. The suite’s sprawling terrace overlooks the flower-flanked pool and the soundproofed windows ensure this sexy sea-facing room keeps its secrets to itself.